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1/ I don't think people fully understand the problem of running a small biz. You need to be able to see further than your employees - that's what you are paid for. Yet, the future is often murky and the sharper biz owners often are the most paranoid.
2/ You are not paid to get people across a pond (week). You need to travel across the ocean (years).
Obviously, if you are "life-of-pi-style" in a tiny raft crossing the ocean and are hit by waves or storms, you will likely make bad decisions. That's par for the course.
Obviously, if you are "life-of-pi-style" in a tiny raft crossing the ocean and are hit by waves or storms, you will likely make bad decisions. That's par for the course.
3/ Which means that in order to prevent your raft from flipping over, you will often make hasty decisions, ration food, all sorts of things, which in retrospect will seem like poor judgements.
BUT
BUT
4/ The other riders can get off at almost any time. You can't. You are the captain. So you have to get the ship to the other side.
And you can't shun that responsibility even if it means having bad weeks or months or years.
Even if people are angry at you.
And you can't shun that responsibility even if it means having bad weeks or months or years.
Even if people are angry at you.
5/ Which means, at all times, you need to be thinking about ergodicity. Specifically, you need to be scattering your bets across time and optimizing for another day at the "casino of life".
If you are bad at doing that, you will make many friends but the raft will sink.
If you are bad at doing that, you will make many friends but the raft will sink.
6/ Additionally, because the raft is small and people will become tight, there will always be a tendency for people to veer towards small cliques, political hostilities/detentes, etc.
It is then also your job to prevent "cannabilism" from occurring.
It is then also your job to prevent "cannabilism" from occurring.
7/ Additionally, like any captain in stormy seas, you can't really tell everyone all of this. Nor can you punt the larger moral decisions along the journey. Those are yours.
At best, you can codify a system, but it will make very bad decisions too.
At best, you can codify a system, but it will make very bad decisions too.
8/ In times of scarcity (which over the the entire time ensemble is EVERY biz), you will make continual trolley-car decisions day-in-day-out.
Decisions that hurt one person in favor of another. Decisions that shoot your short-term for the long-term (or vice versa).
Decisions that hurt one person in favor of another. Decisions that shoot your short-term for the long-term (or vice versa).
9/ And from the outside, no matter which tough moral decision you take, there will always be pros/cons to taking the other side of those decisions. Additionally, the observer will always have hindsight bias.
10/ The life-of-pi thing is not a joke btw. During my biz, I've had to help employees/vendors through divorces, deaths, cancer, violence, all 7 sins, insurrections, rebellions, shortages, etc - all while getting hit in 30 ft waves in a boat as weak and brittle as a human bone.
11/ But don't kid yourself. If the raft sinks, none one of the sideline moralizers on the ground will lift the tiniest finger to help you. At best, maybe a shark will pick up your remains.
So don't be scared to make the tough moral decisions.
So don't be scared to make the tough moral decisions.
12/ And don't expect your moral decisions to have anything close to perfect aim. I've occasionally shared tough moral decisions in my cos with other people - everytime no one knew the *right* answer.
Also, as soon as they say decide, I can give them another variable to flip.
Also, as soon as they say decide, I can give them another variable to flip.
13/ If you want to make tough moral decisions, a great way to do this is to start your own company.
But if you are only going to criticize, at least listen to the entire story. Don't assume you would do any better.
It's always easy when you don't have skin-in-the-game.
But if you are only going to criticize, at least listen to the entire story. Don't assume you would do any better.
It's always easy when you don't have skin-in-the-game.
14/ It's ok to disagree with a company and its leaders. But don't always assume you would make better moral decisions.
At their core, every biz owner is just trying to get their raft to dry land against incredibly strong forces of entropy.
At their core, every biz owner is just trying to get their raft to dry land against incredibly strong forces of entropy.
15/ And don't forget that this is not a metaphorical struggle.
The fact that we have a complex society where we have subspecialized hunters-and-gatherers doesn't mean that we are not in a risky jungle. Don't be lulled into believing that.
The fact that we have a complex society where we have subspecialized hunters-and-gatherers doesn't mean that we are not in a risky jungle. Don't be lulled into believing that.
End/ Next time you want to rip apart moral biz decisions, just try to remember the life-raft concept, the risky ocean, and realize that it may be more complex.
OTOH, if thinking about this makes you hunger for an ocean adventure - I'll see you out on the seas, Captain!
OTOH, if thinking about this makes you hunger for an ocean adventure - I'll see you out on the seas, Captain!
